How do you know if a river is safe to swim?

Stay out of the water if Cloudy water can be a warning that there are more germs in the water than normal. Discolored or smelly water could mean there is a harmful algal bloom (HAB) in the water. Heavy rain picks up anything it comes in contact with (for example, human and animal poop).



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Stay out of the water if Cloudy water can be a warning that there are more germs in the water than normal. Discolored or smelly water could mean there is a harmful algal bloom (HAB) in the water.

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About 44 percent of U.S. waterways are too polluted for fishing or swimming, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

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Compared with a pool, wild swimmers are more likely to become unwell from swimming in outdoor water as there will always be potentially disease-causing microbes present.

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With abiotic factors, checking the water chemistry such as the water temperature and dissolved oxygen (DO2) is a great way to determine the health of a river. A higher temperature and lower DO2 makes a difficult environment to sustain a diversity of fish and aquatic organisms.

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